Head of Food Bank says local working families going hungry, homeless

Castlegar Community Harvest Food Bank can no longer meet the needs of the working poor. We can not continue to rob Peter to pay Paul. We do not have the capacity to raise any more funds than we already do. We operate 100-per-cent on volunteers and we do not pay for the use of the building that we are housed in. There are no more cuts to be made.

I have to tell another family that we can not help them and that the impending homelessness that they fear is, in fact, in their very near future. Perhaps you can tell them, as they are tax payers and live in beautiful B.C. They are not middle class and now they are not the working class, they are now, the hurting class. The ones that work hard and starve, the ones that look at the Province and Canada to look after their best interests. The ones that fight for democracy and fairness. The ones that just want to live a basic life, a life that keeps food in the bellies of their kids and a roof over their heads.

Now perhaps you will say, Deb, you are being a bit dramatic, and that community needs to come together. You know, it takes a village. Well, the village is getting tired while more and more struggle.

So I'd like to ask you for some backup this Friday, when I meet with this family. I don't know that I can face this on my own. Somehow offering them extra KD is just not going to cut it. So having said that, I hope that you are all in my corner, fighting the good fight.

Families First is a good motto and something to strive for. So let's all live the Canadian dream, let's not have winners and losers or the haves and the have nots. We need to do better, we can do better.